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Archive for the ‘weather’ Category

Singapore Sojourn Post 1

Posted in A writer's life, am wrinting, research, Singapore, Submissions, weather, writer's journey, tagged , , , , , , , on May 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »

I am in Singapore, where it is hot and humid and very different.

It was my plan to blog everyday but that’s going to be tedious because I am going to write a lot while I’m here and the bulk of my plan is to hang with my son and daughter-in-law and then go on a side trip to China. I’ll be heading home in early July.

We have made a few plans so far. Catch up with writer friends. Going to the Fut Tak Chi Museum, which was an early temple built in 1820 just after Raffles opened up Singapore. Part of my research for A Prudential Light. Then we are having afternoon tea in the Great Lobby of Raffles because why not.

For a start I wanted to share some photos of the condo we are staying in. It’s huge, lots of apartments but it also lovely and has a metro across the road.

There are contemplative spaces or just nice surroundings for a bbq.

Lots of fish

And more pond views

And then there is the swimming pool, which I have been to every morning. That makes two so far. I just walk in the pool.

I’ve also seen a few of these dark frangapanis.

I’d show you a picture of my hair, which is very frizzy due to humidity but I don’t want to scare you.

I think being out of home give me time for thinking about things, about life and home and my partner Matthew but also time to be with people I love too. I think I always feel that way when I travel, feel the distance and wanting all the people I care about be they family or friends to be near. Life isn’t like that though.

On the writing front, Aunt Prudence has been in my mind a lot. I have done some planning. My daughter in law helped me pick a name for my character and I did a bit of research on early Singapore. Lots more to do. Now I just need to start writing.

On the submission front my middle grade fantasy appears to have lucked out on two markets. My Regency romance similarly, although there maybe a week or two left to run.

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Currently in Nottingham

Posted in A writer's life, Climate, Travel, UK, United Kingdom, Warhammer, weather, tagged , , , , , on January 5, 2024| Leave a Comment »

There’s been a lot of rain hereabouts. Storm Gerrick while we were in Brighton and Storm Henk while we are in the north. The River Trent is in flood, but hopefully it has dropped from its peak last evening.

We are having a quiet, relaxing time with a few trips out. Matthew’s lovely cousins gave us the use of a room at the top of the house with an ensuite and we are cosy and warm. We sleep a lot but as I might have mentioned it is very dark here in the UK in Winter. Two hours less sunlight than Winter in Canberra. I did a bit of research. The flip side of that is that there is two hours more sunlight in summer in the UK than at home. I am very sunlight dependent I find. At home I’m awake with the dawn.

If we have something on I’m fine with being awake when it is dark, otherwise at 4pm I feel like it’s the middle of the night and I have this instinct to go hibernate. Weird. I can understand why some people get SAD in Winter.

So far we went to the Broadway cinema and watched a Filipino film called Raging Grace. It was a great film screened in a lounge with an eclectic mix of chairs. We had dinner in the cafe first. Then last night we had dinner with Marc at The Botanist restaurant a short walk from where we are staying. It was great to catch up after so many years. I saw Marc in 2019 but Matthew has not travelled since 2014 I think. It is hard when you really enjoy spending time with someone but you live so far apart. Anyway, we ate, we talked and were chucked out of the restaurant as it closed at ten. Hahahaha. We could have gone to the bar but it was late by then.

Yesterday we went for a walk. First to grab some brunch/lunch and then cousin Bob suggested we walk along the embankment next to the river which was in flood. We did do that walk but kept on going until we walked to Warhammmer World. We had a look around and a drink in Bugman’s Bar. I think we are heading there again today. We caught an Uber back though as it was more than 10,000 steps.

Otherwise today I’m not sure what we have planned. Maybe dinner in the pub across the road. As we were travelling in Winter we hadn’t really planned to do touristy stuff. We planned on hanging out getting to know our family and friends more and maybe write and walk etc. This is what we are doing so all good.

We hadn’t planned too much ahead but now I’ve booked some accommodation in South Shields, Newcastle on Tyne, within walking distance of the great, great, great grandfather’s house and other things so that’s kind of cool. Then we head to Edinburgh for a few days, a day in Lancaster to meet up with friends as we break our journey back to Hertfordshire.

Trent River in flood
A quick view of how fast the river is flowing.

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Sweltering

Posted in A writer's life, phd, Uncategorized, weather, tagged , , , , , , on January 24, 2017| Leave a Comment »

It’s summer here in good ol’ Australia. In Canberra, like elsewhere in the country it’s hot. It’s bloody hot. Canberra is usually dry so the heat can be bearable.  However, when it gets humid it’s a right stinker. There are other places worse off so I won’t claim the most miserable place to be.

Yesterday I worked from home with the aircon on downstairs in my house. It was completely bearable. Every time I went upstairs it was like stepping into a furnace. My god it was hot up there.

Come bedtime I went up to the bedroom and turned on the aircon above the bed. The aircon above the bed was dead. I tried the fuse box, changing the batteries in the remote control, turning it off and on at the wall. It was dead. Matthew came home and he confirmed it was dead. We don’t use the aircon much, maybe once or twice a year. It worked last time I turned it on about a week or two ago.

Why I didn’t just go back down stairs I don’t know. I put our ceiling fan on but even on high, blowing a hurricane, it made no difference. I had ice water and naked skin. Still no joy there  in the sleep stakes.

Today, I’m headachey and queasy and not too happy about it either. I came into campus as the study centre has excellent aircon, but I’m not feeling up to scratch at all. I’m not sure why I’m here. Can I actually read and process academic journal articles, read French philosophy? Just the thought makes me want to puke.

It’s not all doom and gloom. I did finish Opi Battles the Space Pirates last week and laid it out for proofreading. It’s a bit of fluff. It’s fun and I hope funny. The world needs some comic relief just now.

Also, the last call for romance writers boosted the responses somewhat. I’m still looking for respondents for both surveys.

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